Inspired

So I was inspired by Keith's testimony today about writing a weekly email to his class and thought I would start.  Can't guarentee a new post each week, even though that would be ideal, but I want to write as much as I can! So here goes...
 This past week a student brought me the BEST note a coach could ever ask for. 

 

I found it very humorous that the cover was so fru-fru and didn't prepare me at all for what was inside.  Anyone who has ever coached before has to agree that this is a HUGE compliment!  Think about it, I am training these 1st through 4th grade girls to run a 5K.  I run them every PE class for at least 15 minutes.  Most of them whine the entire time!  Now before you make judgments, I only have them run 3 minutes at a time and then we walk in between sets.  However, most of the 3 minutes I spend saying, "come on girls" , "you can do it", "think of how much healthier and stronger you are getting" because they act as if I am asking them to run a marathon!  But this girl, Marie, is thankful, and even joyful for what I am putting her through even when she wants to puke!

That got me thinking about our spiritual walk and the trials that are put in our paths.  Can we say we are like Marie in that case?  Are we thankful and joyful even on days that we want to puke, or throw in the towel?  Check out these verses from James 1:2-4

Consider it pure joy my brothers whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

Marie gets that if she works hard, even when she doesn't want to, she will become a better runner.  But do we get that the trials that we go through on a daily basis are maturing us and making us stronger Christians?  It is easy to say that we get it, but do we really?  Do we really trust God's in control and He is putting us through hard times in order to grow us, or do we get frustrated with Him for continuing to work on us?

As for the joyful part, read what 1 Peter 4:12-13 says:

Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.

Think about how awesome Marie is gonna feel when she goes out and runs a 5K and realizes her hard work and sweat has paid off!  I always tell my girls, "if running was easy, everyone would do it".  I think the same goes for being a Christian.  It's not an easy path.  It's full of challenges...it takes dedication and lots of patience, which our world does not embrace.  However, you my friend have chosen to be part of something BIG! And it should fill your heart with joy to think of what the outcome is going to be!  Hard work?  Sweat? Tears? Trials? Yes! But if it were easy, everyone would do it! 

As you go through your week I hope that you will not only expect the trials that God puts before you, but that you will embrace them.  Be encouraged that God is right by your side and is wanting you to come to Him for guidence, just like a coach would be.  He is the best coach you could ask for, and unlike any other coach you have ever had, he knows ALL of the plays and how to execute them.  Ask Him for direction this week and see if you can love the trials of your Chirstian walk as much as Marie loves PE!

Time to update!

Okay so I haven't blogged on here since February...no,no not last week February, LAST year's February! I have to be honest, one reason I quit was because I didn't feel like anyone was reading it. The other reason is that Facebook is so much faster and a lot less work! However, blogging is just different, so I will try to stay inspired!
Our class is in a GREAT place right now! It has taken a long time, a LOT of prayer and patience to get us to this point! The Lord has taught us a lot about praying with perseverance. But we didn't stop and He has answered! In the past few months our attendance has almost doubled in size and we couldn't be more excited! Corey and I have taken on the responsibility of teaching for now and we joke all the time that "y'all might not be learning anything, but at least everyone is having fun"! But really we hope there is learning going on, because we sure do grow in our Christian walk each week as we prepare for our lessons.
One thing I want to try to do each week is post at least one "devotional" that hopefully will give you something to think about each week. This week I have to start by reflecting on the last 5 weeks in my own life. January 20 was the last day that I ran until this week. I had known something was wrong with my foot for several weeks but I had decided to "run through" the pain... BAD idea! Long story short, I ended up in a boot for 4 weeks. Now, I haven't been a "runner" that long, only a year or so, but when I was told to park it for 4 weeks...I really thought I was going to lose my mind! Running has become part of me. It's who I am and what I do. Not only that but I have an AMAZING connection with the group of people that I run with and I was afraid I would become the outsider. So February was not a happy month for me. It probably wasn't happy month for my family either! I was grouchy, I was mad and I had a short fuse. All I thought about was running, or not being able to run, or my friends running without me, or how horrible it was to wear that stupid boot all day everyday! There were a lot of days that I thought, "so this is what depression feels like?!" But on February 22 I went back to the dr. and was released from the boot! I was thrilled and sure I was going to run the next morning! That wasn't the plan of my run friends though. Pretty much they refused to run with me(without flat out saying it) and handed me a plan to slowly work my way back in. I was game the first day. The plan said I had to be able to walk for 1 hour before moving forward, so that morning I walked for 1 hour. Day 1 said to run for 5 minutes, walk, then repeat, for a total of 10 minutes of running. I decided I could handle more so I ran a total of 15 minutes. I felt fine, but I took the next few days off so I wouldn't have to hear lectures from my running buddies!
Now even though I was getting back into the groove,I was still extremely frustrated! I prayed every spare minute I had for healing. I would lay down at night and beg God to heal me as I slept so that I would wake up ready to run. I was feeling okay, but knew that I had to be very careful with my decisions about running.
Then Sunday rolled around. I haven't been able to wear cute shoes for a month because of that boot so I decided I would wear my tall boots and a skirt. I was so excited but my foot no more than touched insole of that boot and I knew that wasn't going to happen! I was NOT ready for heels! So, back to the boring shoes. Strike 1. So we get to church, I teach, and as we leave someone(who knows who they are!) says something about me being in pain because I was limping. I was shocked because I was in pain, but thought I was hiding it and I didn't know I was limping. Strike 2. Then as we walk into the lobby of the sanctuary, one of the ladies standing there greets me with "oh, are you upset today? not having a good day?" Strike 3! I almost cried right there in front of her, but instead I waited until we sat down. Every prayer I lifted up was full of hurt and tears. I had begged God everyday to heal me and He wasn't working fast enough! I was not happy with myself for being frustrated with Him, but I know I was. I decided that afternoon I was going to have to go back to the dr. and seek help because I wasn't getting any better.
But, that night I got out my Bible and looked up verses about healing and this was the last one I read: James 5 :13-16
"Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone unhappy? Let them sing songs of praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned they will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective."
I think this is a scripture we can all relate to at some point. We all have hurts, whether they be physical, emotional, or spiritual. We all have struggles and I would dare to say, we've all been at the point of thinking God isn't working fast enough. This verse came to me just when I needed it. I needed the part that said, "prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well". I realized that I every time I got frustrated about things not healing fast enough, I was not showing faith. What a slap in the face! Right then I stopped and said a new prayer. I asked for forgiveness for my unintentional lack of faith, praised God for the awesome powers that He has, and asked Him to heal me because I knew going back to the dr wasn't going to fix me, only He could do that.
The next day I woke up a different person. I stepped out of the bed expecting pain when my foot hit the floor, but it wasn't there. In fact, all day Monday I waited for the pain to kick in, but it never did. Tuesday I had Run Club and decided I would take my chances and run, fully expecting a set back...but no. So yesterday, Wednesday, I met my running buddies and we ran outside on our regular 3 mile trail for the first time. They were all very skeptical, and truthfully, not happy at my decision making, but I ran the whole thing and didn't feel one bit of pain! Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I haven't had ANY pain over the last week, but it is so minimal and spread out, that it doesn't bother me any more than soreness from lifting weights!
Now, there are people out there who would think I was CRAZY if I told them my story of healing, but there are also a lot of people who need to hear stories like mine! Even if my story sounds nutty, one thing you can't argue with is the scripture. Ask, WITH FAITH, and He will answer.
So, as you come across struggles and pain, or you come across people in your life with these issues, I challenge you to revisit this verse. Read it, learn it, apply it! Let God change things in your life this week, like He did in mine:)

The Power of Influence

What a great time we had this morning in Session 2 of the Love Dare! We had the opportunity to share love stories and lots of laughs. We did lots of reflecting on the events of the week, along with the dares, and it sounds like we are all having great experiences. What I like about this whole process is, it's just as much a self-assessment as it is a couple thing. Based on the conversations that took place this morning, I think it is safe to say we are making some self discoveries that are helping us grow too.
Today's session was about influence. The power of influence is strong and surrounds us daily. The people that we surround ourselves with, the media, our own selfishness, and our own experiences play a part in how we view relationships. Sometimes we have to step back and evaluate how the things and people in our lives are influencing us. Are they pushing us towards the right things, or pulling us away? Often times friends, though they have the best intentions, plant seeds of doubt that can effect our marriages. They see things from an outsiders view and issue opinions based on protecting us, their friend. In reality, this can be a dangerous situation. If your friend is only looking out for you, and not your marriage as a whole, then they can pull you away from your spouse. This will only lead to more tension and bigger problems.
In addition to people, there are "things" that can pose a threat to our marriages as well. Other relationships, debt, work, schedules...these are all things that end marriages everyday. But in the Fireproof movie, Michael tells Caleb something like; Fireproof doesn't mean the fire doesn't come, it means that when it does you can handle it. We all know that there are negative influences out there, so we have to be prepared to recognize them and deal with them as they expose themselves.
The good news is there are also positive influences that we can attach ourselves to. We all have people in our lives who we respect because they have the same beliefs that we have, and have somehow made it work in their marriage. Seek those people out and spend time with them. Surround yourself with people who are like you, and think like you. That is why today everyone got "couple buddies". Hopefully you and your buddies will be able to chat throughout the week and make sure all is going well, and if not share it with them. Ask them to pray for you. Go to dinner, whatever will build that relationship so that you have two more people to add to your positive influence list!
The dares get more intense with each week but DON'T QUIT! As Dory would say, "Just keep swimming".

Leading Your Heart

Today was the first day of Love Dare for our group and I must say we had an awesome turn out! There were 17 of us who made a commitment to ourselves and each other to grow our marriages. I have to say that I LOVE that we are going through this process with our closest friends!
Today's focus was on Leading Your Heart. Being a part of the "Romantic" society that we live in, it is popular belief that you should "follow your heart". Movies, songs, and even commercials are full of examples of this. Do what feels right at the moment...whether that means jumping into relationships blindly or downing a bag of Doritos! We can justify it at the time, but often we end up paying for it later!
Proverbs 16:25 says...There is a way that seems right to man, but in the end it is the way of death.
Often times our heart follows the path of our priorities, so if our priorities are jumbled, then so is our focus. We constantly chase more money, power, and material things, but the verse above explains were that gets us! We have to do some reassessment of our priorities and make a conscience effort lead our heart towards the path that God has established for us.
Matthew 6:21 says, Your heart will always be where your treasure is.
So I guess we have to ask ourselves, What is my treasure? Where is the majority of my time spent?
Just some things to consider as we embark on our first week of Dares!
That's all for now friends, so go forth and dare to love your spouse more each day.

Excuses, Excuses

When was the last time you had someone hit you with a whiny excuse? Better yet, when was the last time you offered one up?! Excuses seem so innocent and logical when you need one, yet so hard to swallow when you are on the receiving end! To me, excuses are a sign of guilt. When I have to make an excuse for something I did or didn't do, it's usually because I feel guilty and I have to convince myself (and whoever I am talking to) that there was no way around it. Either that or I wasn't really committed to whatever the expectation was, so I let it slip by and then had to make an excuse to "cover it up".
The fact is there is ALWAYS an opportunity for an excuse! It is very easy to talk ourselves out of commitments when we are tired, busy, or maybe even uncomfortable. Since the majority of us MUST go to work 5 or 6 days out of the week, Sundays are the only day that we can "choose" what we do. I think Sunday must be Satan's busiest day! He has a way of making the sheets feel extra soft, the kids sleep extra late, and can fill our heads with a million excuses of why we should just stay in our beds. But if we choose this route, then Satan wins! And if we continue to choose this route week after week, our faith goes from hot, to lukewarm, to cold. While cold seems like the worst of these, check out what Revelations has to say about being lukewarm...
Revelations
3:15 “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were cold or hot.
3:16 So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will vomit you out of my mouth.

Although He says that He wished we were "cold or hot" He really expects us to be hot! (The only place being "cold" is gonna get us is...in a very HOT place!)
So, we have to stop making excuses, stop letting Satan win, and GET OUR BUTTS TO CHURCH! Not only that, we need to make it a goal to stop having to make excuses in all areas of oour lives. I think we will all feel better about ourselves if we stay true to the commitments we make, in our Christian walk and in our daily, unpredictable lives:)

I DARE YOU!

Beginning Feb. 14th, Valentines Day, Journey will be starting the Love Dare. This is a series that goes along with the moive, Fireproof, which is about a couple struggling with their marriage and their faith. Love Dare is a study about what love is and what it isn't.
The Bible says,

Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.
1 Corinthians 13:7-8

The Love Dare is geared towards all couples because it focuses on taking marriages to the next level. In order to be the best spouse possible, we have to understand God's unfailing love. God loved us first, He loves us more, and He will do anything for us. We have to treat the ones we love in the same manner.

The study will take place over a course of 9 weeks, beginning on the 14th. It will be held in the Journey classroom, and be lead by the Eddlemon's.

Please plan on joining us as this is a wonderful study that you will be glad you were a part of!

Journey Makeover

After a much needed brainstorm last week, it was decided that we should do some updating to our room. So on Saturday, Wes, Eric, Jeremy, Amy, Corey, and I met at the church to do some rearranging and painting! We painted the front wall a mossy green, which is FABULOUS and makes the room look SO much bigger! We converted an entertainment center into a kitchen, and made the old kitchen a storage room for School Box Ministries. It was a lot of work and a very long day, and even though we have lots more to do, I think everyone enjoyed the new digs Sunday morning.

This wall brought to you by Leigh Ann and Amy!

Now we can actually sit and eat our breakfast at a table, while we have Bible study! What a concept! We also have pens and post-its to take notes:)